Ok this is too cute - they posted this on her website and I thought it'd be fun to post it here too. Take a look...
Craving something sweet but can't wait for Hillary to win the White House? Try our snickerdoodle recipe below, and don't forget that you can make America a sweeter place to live by helping to make Hillary the next president!
Cat Cora's Snickerdoodle Cookies Yields 2 dozen cookies
Recipe 1/2 cup butter 3/4 cup sugar 1 egg 1 1/4 cup flour 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt
Topping 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Directions Cream butter. Add sugar and egg and add mix thoroughly. Sift flour, baking powder and salt; stir in mixture. Form dough into balls about the size of walnuts and roll in mixture of sugar and cinnamon. Place two inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 - 10 minutes at 400 degrees.
Ok now here's the most important part you guys - remember to send her some love and thank her for sharing her recipe eh?
Hillary's campaign announced their fundraising numbers for the month of Februrary, and the news is huge. They've had their biggest month since Hillary set out on the campaign trail, raising over $35 million!
The vast majority of this money came in on-line.
Another thing to note is that over 200,000 of the people who've donated were first-time donors.
Peter Daou - Hillary's Internet Director had this to say on her website's blog - take a look...
As Hillary's Internet Director, I want to share some great news with you: today, our campaign announced that we've raised approximately $35 million in contributions for the month of February, $30 million of which is grassroots donations from supporters like you! It's an amazing show of support for Hillary and we are immensely grateful to you.
Along with this outpouring of support, you've sent in thousands of moving and inspiring emails and letters.
Here are a few samples:
Hey everyone, I am a poor grad student, but I just donated $15.44 to Hillary's campaign. If I can do it, almost everybody can. I'll just eat ramen noodles for dinner tonight!!! Please people, match my donation of $15.44!! Will anyone take me up on my offer??? MADAM PRESIDENT, NEVER LOSE FAITH! WE ARE BEHIND YOU! PEACE TO EVERYONE!!!
- Neema from New York, NY
I just donated $50.00. $5 for me and 9 $5 contributions for those who can not. Keep up the great work everyone. I am volunteering here in Ohio. I live just 15 miles from the campaign office in Columbus.
- Patrick from Grove City, OH
I love it. My husband just called me from his job. We were discussing Hillary...I told him I was not giving up, I am getting ready to make some Texas calls after I donate my $5.00 for today. He said quit being cheap, send at least 25.00, we will be blessed, and send some more next week! Gotta love the men who know a strong woman when they see one!
- Robin from Gary, IN
It is going to be an uphill fight and we are all on it!!! I donated my lunch money today and will make calls tonight and other days within the next 14 days. I am sacrificing my time because this is our moment to shine with HILLARY!!!! March is HILLARY's month and she will close and win the nomination by June!!! Let us fight with HILLARY because this is our future and our children's future at stake, we cannot afford to lose this battle! YES WE WILL HILL!!!!
- Ed from Los Angeles
I just made another donation of $100.44. I live pay check to pay check because my husband is currently unemployed but I am willing to max out my credit cards to help Hillary win the nomination. I want to be able to tell my children and my grandchildren that I participated in the most exciting election process in our history and that I helped a woman knock down doors and walls that have stood in our way for hundreds of years. I believe in you Hillary and so do the American people. We need to stay positive and work hard to ensure success in the coming weeks. We need the big guns to come out now and we need to be competitive on our T.V. ads! I challenge everyone reading this blog to donate $10.44 before the end of the day . . . we can make a difference.
- Betty from Turlock, CA
My husband just walked into my office after checking his e-mail and asked, "So did you send $5 to Hillary today yet?" I said, "Not yet, but how about I send $20.44." He said, "Sounds good." And when he left, I smiled. Gotta love a man who gets it!
- Joy from Forest City, IA
I talked with a woman whose birthday is today-SHE IS 101 YEARS OLD! YAY!! She will be voting and said she has done her civic duty for MANY years. I guess so! Let's keep calling, I think the personal contact helps. WE'RE IN IT TO WIN IT!!!!!
- Deborah from Romulus, NY
I can really relate to that first note - when I first moved to the DC area in the summer of 1984 I worked for a House Subcommittee and was paid the paltry sum of $12,000 a year. I ate a LOT of Ramen Noodles!
At any rate, I thought folks might like to hear this good news. Leave a comment and let us know what you think or how the campaign's going in your neck of the woods.
In the meantime, dig deep and help Hillary start off March with a big push.
I've got some new information for you all on how you can help with the campaign - even if you're not near a campaign office or if your state has already held caucuses or primaries.
Now there's been a lot of talk about the state of the race. At this point, Hillary and Obama are only separated by about 3% of the delegates and they'll reach the convention with only about 1% separating them. The campaign has set up a new website to help get information out there on the state of the race for delegates. Please check this out on a regular basis for the latest information.
Use this information in letters to the editor, on blogs (join us at HillarysVoice), in emails to and in conversations with family, friends, neighbors and coworkers. Use every opportunity to get this information out there.
The campaign also needs your help on the ground in Ohio and Texas. If you have the time and the ability to get to either state to help get out the vote for Hillary, please click on the below links to sign up and get information on how you can help.
Lastly - and this is always an important factor in any national campaign like this - Hillary still needs our help to get ads on the air in Ohio and Texas between now and the primaries on March 4th. I know you've all given what you can so far, but I'm urging you to dig a bit deeper and give till it hurts. She can't do this without our help!
Thanks for all you're doing guys - this is one of the most important elections in a generation and together we can help Hillary make it to the Oval Office!
We had a rough day yesterday to be sure. I finally called it a day around 1am and as I was clearing out the dishes hubby left in the sink (sigh, again) I paused for a minute - leaned on the sink and thought... how in the HELL does Hillary keep on going in the face of the hate, the anger, the unfair media coverage, the sexism, and - tonight especially – this latest disappointment?
What drives this sister with the heart of a lioness?
Getting back into the White House? Nooooo. She’s been there before.
Receiving more adulation and love from the MSM & the press (Tweety & Russert)? Hardly!
Maybe it has something to do with the fact that she is the very definition of a public servant. She sees how much work there is to be done and she knows she’s the one person who’ll actually get results. She’s got a long history of public service and sticking up for those without a voice.
Over the summer I attended a state-wide meeting of volunteers, and a woman from Hillary’s staff mentioned something that really stuck with me. She said they were getting Hillary ready for a debate and there was this briefing book full of the things she’d accomplished in her career. That book was 312 pages long (single spaced)!
No I won’t list everything here, but take a look at a few little known facts about her record…
As a law student Hillary worked to identify children who were victims of abuse and neglect and volunteered at the New Haven Legal Services offices. Her first job out of law school was going door-to-door with the Children's Defense Fund to find out why children weren’t enrolled in public schools. Her findings prompted Congress to pass laws ensuring that kids with disabilities were accommodated and taught in our public schools (setting up programs in which my son and countless others have benefited enormously).
When Reagan was President, Hillary was Chairman of the Legal Services corporation- -legal services for the poor. In a head-to-head battle with the President, she successfully fought Reagan off when he tried to shift $300 million legal services to defense spending.
In Arkansas Hillary ran the University of Arkansas's legal aid and prison projects; reformed Arkansas' education system; instituted a model parent education program; created new scholarships for single parents; and expanded medical facilities in Arkansas' poorest areas.
As First Lady Hillary helped create the State Children's Health Insurance Program; spearheaded efforts to double child care spending, dramatically expand Head Start, and create Early Head Start; and expanded the federal after school program to a $1 billion formula grant program that reaches every state.
She could have gone back into private life when she and Bill left the White House. It would have been easy and she could have gotten a job that paid a boatload of money with her mind, intellect and background. Any law firm, foundation or University would have jumped at the chance to put her name on their letterhead.
But she didn’t. She wanted to keep doing what she does best – helping folks as a public servant.
But instead she thought "I still have work to do on behalf of the people of this world” and she realized she could continue her work as a Senator from NY. So she put together a campaign staff, rolled up her sleeves, put on her boots and took her message to the people of NY. She even headed up state when the “experts” told her not to bother.
Six years later she ran for and won re-election with 67% of the vote. She could have won re-election without the margin of victory in the City - that's how much the folks upstate (the people she was told to write off) loved, respected and trusted her. And they still do.
She’s done a great job for her state and for the people of this nation from that post…
Hillary created a teacher recruitment program to bring outstanding teachers into low-income communities. She sponsored legislation to grow childcare funding to $11.2 billion. She fought off dramatic cuts to Medicaid and SCHIP. She passed legislation with Lindsay Graham for expanded health services for military families. She made sure that six million children have health insurance through the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). She fought for and won health benefits for our troops in the National Guard and Reserves. She fought to preserve combat pay for injured National Guard and Reserve soldiers and passed a law establishing health tracking for returning soldiers. She passed the Kids Car and Safety Act. She successfully stopped efforts by the FDA to keep Plan B off the market. She led the effort to get rid of the head of the FDA. She held the Senate's first committee ever on environmental justice. She fought to extend unemployment benefits, and won. She successfully advocated for education reform. She fought to make abortion safe, legal and rare. She wrote and secured passage of legislation to assist family caregivers in accessing affordable and high quality respite care. She fought to make sure the medicines we give our children are safe. She was the first US Senator to label what was happening in Darfur genocide. Her work on behalf of the environment and the health of first responders after 9/11 is nothing short of heroic. She fought for and got enhanced body armor for our troops. She got the Pentagon to respond to the Congress in terms of planning for Iraq withdrawal. The list goes on.
Being Senator's a great job and yet she thought "I can accomplish even more from the Oval Office". So she tossed her hat in the ring after a lot of thought and preparation and she's been on the road nearly 24/7 taking her message to the voters for over a year now, working for the chance to take on the republicans in the general election.
And you KNOW that's not going to be a fun contest. Most people would say, "screw this, I'm outta here" after the way they treated her and her family over the past 15 years (I know I would have and – admit it – you would too). She knows better than anyone what awaits her if she makes it into the general and yet she's still determined to work her ass off for the right to be sent into that cesspool of a contest against the right wing attack machine – the RNC & the multitude of 527s that are waiting in the wings.
This woman has the heart of champion and she's fighting for the chance to fight for us. We need to let her know we have her back. We’ve got to keep our chin up - stay strong - and keep fighting for her the way she's been fighting for us.
Because at the end of the day, we need her more than she needs us.
Ya know I doubt many besides her family, closest friends or aides ever think to ask Hillary how she manages to keep going like this. In fact, that moment when she let her guard down at that event in New Hampshire a few weeks back gave us a brief glimpse of just how unusual it is for voters, the press, the media or anyone really to ask her questions like that. She listens - her main focus is always on other people and she always seems to be looking for ways to help others. She was actually caught off guard there and I think it moved her deeply to know that someone – a stranger - actually cared enough to ask. She’s answered tens of thousands of questions about her record, her proposals, and all that other stuff. But this had nothing to do with policy. It had nothing to do with her record. It was just one simple question – “how do you manage?”
And that’s when we saw this…
She’s fighting for us because in her heart of hearts, she knows she’s the one person who can tackle the problems that await our next leader in the most effective way possible. She knows she can get the job done like no one else can when it comes to …
Making UNIVERSAL healthcare a reality, knowing she’s the only candidate with a truly UNIVERSAL health care plan – one that will cover everybody and leave no one behind. Rebuilding our middle class. Stopping the foreclosures. Locking in loan rates to help steady the housing market. Bringing our combat troops home asap and safely (starting in 60 days - no later). Developing Green Collar jobs & breaking our dependence on fossil fuels. Making college more accessible and affordable. Ensuring that all four year olds have access to Pre-K programs. Ending no child left behind. Creating a new $3,500 college tax credit. Increasing the maximum Pell Grant. Protecting our public schools from those who would push for their privatization via vouchers. Protecting our reproductive rights and making birth control readily available. Providing our troops with what they need to do what she asks of them Dealing with our skyrocketing budget deficits. Providing our nation with a functioning government that abides by the laws of our land (ie the Constitution). Restoring our government to one that can respond to natural disasters (or goddess forbid – unnatural disasters). Forming a government that relies on & is guided by science again instead of a neocon agenda. Restoring our good name around the globe through her contacts with leaders. Dealing with whatever the bad guys might throw at us Leading our military as Commander in Chief
And most importantly…
Kicking some serious GOP @ss in the general election!
After all that she’s been through she still wants to be of service to the nation she loves – and continue fighting for the causes that we Democrats have been fighting for over the years.
She sees the work that still needs to be done. She sees the battles that still need fighting. She sees people who are hurting and who still need her help.
She’s fighting for the chance to do the work. She’s fighting for the chance to win those battles. She’s fighting for the chance to help the millions of people who are counting on her.
I plan to stand by her every step of the way – and I know I won’t be standing alone.
Well it’s been a long day here in MD. Started off with a call from the sitter saying she would need the day off but then hubby came home early (weather prevented a rebuild they had scheduled) so I thought well heck – I’ve already called into work to say I needed to stay home with the kids and that’s covered now. So it was off to campaign headquarters to make a lot of calls for Hillary.
But first I put together a letter to all our friends here in the area to tell them why I was voting for Hillary. I reminded them of my son’s hard work and progress thanks to the early intervention and programs Hillary fought for, put into place and got funded. I reminded them of what her historic run for the White House means to my little girl – of how hers will be the first generation of girls who’ll actually believe us when we tell them they can be anything they want to be when they grow up – even President.
Then a friend called to set up a play date for our girls. I asked her if she was getting out to vote for Hillary today and she told me she’d probably be voting for Obama (Hillary’s not “warm” enough she says). But did I go into action at that! I’ve been at this for nearly a year now and the thought that a friend might actually vote for someone other than Hillary because of that…???? NO! I told her about Hillary’s work with the CDF (her daughter’s got delays too) and a lot of other things she never knew. I convinced her to vote for Hillary and if Kathy votes for her then I’m pretty sure Ron will to ;o)
I’ve only been down to HQ for phone banks once before – I’ve focused all my efforts in our county volunteer-wise – but I ran into a LOT of people I knew there this morning. There was Mike – a friend from on line. He’s a huge supporter of Hillary’s just like me. We’ve never met before so it was wonderful to actually meet after all this time.
I also ran into our statewide coordinator who’s been to several of our local events – Leecia and her assistant Ronda. At one point Ronda came by and told me to find her later – she’d found a couple small Hillary shirts that she thought might fit my kids. And Leecia’s always so upbeat and friendly – she’s the kind of woman who makes you feel like you’ve known her for years and she works herself ragged for Hillary. She’s that devoted to Hillary (they all are really). I think she said she’d gotten about 5 hours of sleep in the past 3 days. Then there’s Adrienne and all of her interns. They were really great about answering our questions as we logged onto the system and started making calls.
I sat near a guy named David who’d gotten there about a half hour before I did (10ish), and he was still there when I headed home at 7:30. Great guy – I got his card and said I’d send him a link to our new Yahoo discussion group – Hillary’s voice. There was also Beverly, who sat near us at the table. She spoke Mandarin and loads of other Chinese dialects and was a warm and hard-working phone banker – totally into helping Hillary make it to the White House.
An hour after I started calling I saw a very dear friend – Susan - who joined us at the table. I’ve known her for years. She’d been key in setting up the Infants and Toddlers program in our state in the early 90s, and knew everything about what we’d gone through early on to line up the early help that’s made such a huge difference for my son. (Another heroine of mine for the programs she helped to put into place for the thousands of kids in our state who’ve benefited from that early intervention that’s so crucial in a child’s development). She and another friend have been going to HQ to phone bank for a month or two now and it was great trading stories with her as we made calls.
Pizza for lunch.
My friend Susan eventually left – she’s going to be bummed out when she hears what happened later.
Loads more calls and then who should wander into the call center around 2:30 but Hillary herself. She stopped by to thank us all for our hard work and you should have heard the cheers! With everything she’s got going on she still thought to come by and thank everyone. She spent some time shaking hands and meeting us – a real class act to be sure.
She really is a woman of the people.
And boy did she fire us up. I turned into a cheer leader after she left and shouted to the room “are we ready to make calls straight through until the polls are closed????” It was like a pep rally for a few minutes I swear!
A few minutes after settling into more calls I overheard a fellow volunteer say to a voter – “you’re never going to believe who I just shook hands with!” I loved the way she worked Hillary’s visit into her calls!
At one point a woman joined us at the table with her 11 year old daughter – this was her daughter’s first time making calls and I just thought that was the coolest thing. A budding new activist and they’re working hard together to help elect our nation’s first woman president.
Around 4 a woman came in and sat at the table behind us. I overheard her say she’d been in the motorcade that brought Hillary to Headquarters and back out that afternoon. I spoke with her later and she said she was a local volunteer who’d been helping in Virginia. They asked her to drive the staff in with Hillary and even after all that excitement, she was back at HQ making calls with us later.
We were all starting to fade a bit around 6 but I was determined to hang in there until the polls closed at 7 – maybe even try to make some calls into the other states in the region that were open until 8. So I called some voters and then I called even more.
At 7:10 we started to get reports that the roads were icing over, so I signed off, signed out, thanked Adrienne for all her hard work and said I’d try to make it back in on Sunday in the lead-up to Wisconsin and Hawaii, got down to my car and…
Found it covered in a layer of ice.
Now our main car just died about two weeks ago (threw a plug which went right up through the engine block) and the ice scraper was – unfortunately – still in the backseat of that car. The roads were really bad so I was in no hurry even though I was tired.
Remember that scene on the train in Doctor Zhivago – where they open up the train doors to find a wall of ice as it roared toward Siberia (or wherever)? Well I thought of that as I rolled down the windows and knocked a wall of ice away. Got a good story out of it anyway I guess. You had to be there ;o)
As you can see, I got home all right – about an hour or so later. It really was a great day even if we didn’t win. I like to think we helped hold the line a bit and I met some really great people in the process.
Now as many of you might know by now, I’ve been really active in our local effort here in Maryland. I thought I’d share something that was reported in today’s Washington Post about our fearless leader Mary B. She’s been the driving force behind our effort and is a big reason for my taking my efforts on behalf of Hillary up a notch or five by posting to these blogs. Her enthusiasm and drive in this effort are contagious trust me. She could be on vacation with her hubby in So. California but instead, she’s here with us, done one of the things she does best.
Instead she is standing at a Metro station in suburban Bethesda early each morning, bundled in a grey wool coat, one cold bare hand clutching her standard : a wooden stake with two Hillary Clinton yard signs attached.
With the stiff fingers of her other hand, she offers a Hillary Clinton lapel sticker to each commuter who hurries by.
"Sticker for Hillary? Sticker for Hillary?"
Now she’s got a pretty impressive background our leader… she was in the House of Delegates, was elected to the Maryland State Senate and even made a run at the governorship in 1993. Like many of us, she got involved with Bill’s campaign in 1992.
And it was there that she saw Hillary Clinton.
"She came to Annapolis. We did a rally on the statehouse steps. She was speaking for Bill. She did one of her amazing speeches. Not a word misplaced."
Boergers was standing next to US Sen. Barbara Mikulski who was also listening carefully. She remembers Mikulski's assessment: "That's a presidential speech."
Then Boergers realized what Mikulski was getting at and the lens came into focus for her too. This woman, Hillary Clinton, was not just making a speech for her husband. This woman Hillary Clinton could be a president herself.
Smart lady, Mary. She knows people and she saw a leader even back then in Hillary.
Boergers started mustering local support for Clinton last April. She heads a team of 1200 volunteers in Montgomery County. They have been marching in parades, attending community gatherings. Her husband gave her nine days in Iowa as a Christmas gift, and she and several other local women went out there for the caucus.
On the day of the New Hampshire primary, she staffed a phone bank in Baltimore for nine and a half hours, calling voters in that state, making sure they got out to vote. Now there is a small office in Bethesda, and platoons of volunteers waving at passing cars at Montgomery county intersections, and giving out stickers at cold Metro stations getting ready for the Tuesday primary.
At any rate, I thought this article might be a bit of chicken soup for the soul for all of Hillary’s supporters out there. It’s this kind of drive, determination and heart that go into each and every one of us and we’re in this for the long haul folks. It’s a race for delegates and I can’t wait until Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania get their turn to vote.
Robin Morgan ran an essay in RAT back in 1970, called Goodbye to All That Well Ms. Morgan has just updated that essay, and given the double standard that seems to have taken hold in this campaign, I thought it was worth discussing. In so many ways, Morgan echoes what I’ve been thinking for a very long time now, but have never quite been able to express as eloquently as this. Here is part of what she had to say in those 8 pages...
Hillary is too ballsy but too womanly, a Snow Maiden who’s emotional, and so much a politician as to be unfit for politics.
She’s “ambitious” but he shows “fire in the belly.” (Ever had labor pains?)
When a sexist idiot screamed “Iron my shirt!” at HRC, it was considered amusing; if a racist idiot shouted “Shine my shoes!” at BO, it would’ve inspired hours of airtime and pages of newsprint analyzing our national dishonor.
Goodbye to the toxic viciousness . . .
Carl Bernstein's disgust at Hillary’s “thick ankles.” Nixon-trickster Roger Stone’s new Hillary-hating 527 group, “Citizens United Not Timid” (check the capital letters).
C – U – N – T..
It’s disgusting but this kind of shite needs to be called out at every opportunity - it’s beyond offensive to any thinking progressive human being. I don’t think you have to be humor-challenged to find that sexist and unacceptable and yet...
I can hear some of you boys out there tittering away at this even now
Can you imagine if someone had set up a 527 group with the initials spelling out the N word? Stone’s group gets away with it but I can’t even utter the word I’m thinking of in putting the shoe on the other foot. It’s just mind-blowing that this kind of shite is tolerated now that we’re in the 21st Century!
John McCain answering “How do we beat the bitch?" with “Excellent question!” Would he have dared reply similarly to “How do we beat the black bastard?” For shame.
B – I – T – C – H
There’s another word people have no problem throwing around while at the same time not even being able to utter the N word in polite company. Or any company for that matter. For some of us – they’re equally offensive.
Goodbye to the HRC nutcracker with metal spikes between splayed thighs. If it was a tap-dancing blackface doll, we would be righteously outraged—and they would not be selling it in airports. Shame.
Some people just don’t fecking get it. We’re talking about someone’s daughter, wife, mother, sister... would you tolerate this kind of treatment of the girls or women in your life? I sure as hell hope not!
Goodbye to the sick, malicious idea that this is funny. This is not “Clinton hating,” not “Hillary hating.” This is sociopathic woman-hating. If it were about Jews, we would recognize it instantly as anti-Semitic propaganda; if about race, as KKK poison. Hell, PETA would go ballistic if such vomitous spew were directed at animals. Where is our sense of outrage—as citizens, voters, Americans?
So goodbye to conversations about this nation’s deepest scar—slavery—which fail to acknowledge that labor- and sexual-slavery exist today in the U.S. and elsewhere on this planet, and the majority of those enslaved are women.
Women have endured sex/race/ethnic/religious hatred, rape and battery, invasion of spirit and flesh, forced pregnancy; being the majority of the poor, the illiterate, the disabled, of refugees, caregivers, the HIV/AIDS afflicted, the powerless. We have survived invisibility, ridicule, religious fundamentalisms, polygamy, teargas, forced feedings, jails, asylums, sati, purdah, female genital mutilation, witch burnings, stonings, and attempted gynocides. We have tried reason, persuasion, reassurances, and being extra-qualified, only to learn it never was about qualifications after all. We know that at this historical moment women experience the world differently from men—though not all the same as one another—and can govern differently, from Elizabeth Tudor to Michele Bachelet and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
I earned a degree in international relations / Third World development back in the early-‘80s & the atrocity of slavery and the way women and children were treated was swept under the rug back then just as it is today. It's absolutely unacceptable that we have made so little progress in all these years. And I’m convinced that if we elevate a woman to the most powerful post in this world, these horrific practices will be addressed. People will not only talk about this dirty little secret on the world stage, but they’ll actually DO something about ending it.
Hillary found her voice in New Hampshire – she shone as bright as the North Star and many of us finally got to hear her words rather than those of the campaign experts, her husband and the MSM out there. Listen up – here’s some of what she’s been saying...
“For too long, the history of women has been a history of silence. Even today, there are those who are trying to silence our words.
“It is a violation of human rights when babies are denied food, or drowned, or suffocated, or their spines broken, simply because they are born girls. It is a violation of human rights when woman and girls are sold into the slavery of prostitution. It is a violation of human rights when women are doused with gasoline, set on fire and burned to death because their marriage dowries are deemed too small. It is a violation of human rights when individual women are raped in their own communities and when thousands of women are subjected to rape as a tactic or prize of war. It is a violation of human rights when a leading cause of death worldwide along women ages 14 to 44 is the violence they are subjected to in their own homes. It is a violation of human rights when women are denied the right to plan their own families, and that includes being forced to have abortions or being sterilized against their will.
“Women’s rights are human rights. Among those rights are the right to speak freely—and the right to be heard.”
That was Hillary Rodham Clinton defying the U.S. State Department and the Chinese Government at the 1995 UN World Conference on Women in Beijing (look here for the full, stunning speech).
While Hillary served as First Lady back in the ‘90s, her office was widely known as the de facto office on human rights. I have no doubt that the Oval Office will have that dubious distinction if she’s our next President.
Now I’ve never had a problem in letting others know what I’m thinking on any given issue. Call it a like-it-or-leave-I-couldn’t-care-less sort of an attitude. (Hey I post here in support of Hillary – that should tell you a lot!). So it’s hard for me to understand the timidity others feel when it comes to supporting Hillary in this election. I firmly believe that putting Hillary in the Oval Office is the single best thing we can do to lift up the lives of women and girls all over this world. I said as much in my first pro-Hillary diary on DailyKos back in June. Morgan echoes that feeling here...
Time is short and the contest tightening. We need to rise in furious energy—as we did when Anita Hill was so vilely treated in the U.S. Senate, as we did when Rosie Jiminez was butchered by an illegal abortion, as we did and do for women globally who are condemned for trying to break through. We need to win, this time. Goodbye to supporting HRC tepidly, with ambivalent caveats and apologetic smiles. Time to volunteer, make phone calls, send emails, donate money, argue, rally, march, shout, vote.
As for the “woman thing”?
Me, I’m voting for Hillary not because she’s a woman—but because I am..
(Emphasis added)
Damn but that’s powerful stuff!
Now I’m not sure if you caught an article on HuffPo by Martha Burk, Gloria Feldt , Cecelia Fire Thunder, Lulu Flores, Kim Gandy, Ellen Malcolm, Irene Natividad, Ellie Smeal, Gloria Steinem, Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones a couple days ago, but it was a real eye-opener. It sort of echoes what I wrote back in June of how Hillary’s presidency will help women and girls around this world. She’s stood by us in our fight to defend our reproductive rights. She stood on a world stage in Beijing 13 years ago and declared that women’s rights are human rights (what a novel idea!), and she’s led the fight to give women access to emergency contraception, allowing us to determine our own future when it comes to our reproductivity.
I’m excited about this election for what it means to my little girl, who just turned 7 and will grow up believing us when we tell her she really can be anything she wants to be when she grows up – even president. Unlike mine, hers will be first generation to believe it because they’ve seen it happen in their lifetime. And what a POWERFUL message that is!
As women who have spent our careers fighting to protect a woman's right to choose, we recognize that the next president will face serious challenges to safeguard the reproductive health of women. In our opinion, there is one candidate whose leadership on this issue is unparalleled: Hillary Clinton.
They go on to list why they believe she’ll stand next to them us in the fight to appoint Supreme Court Justices who will protect our hard-fought reproductive rights. She’ll stand up for families because she’s fought for the Family & Medical Leave Act and fought to cover military families under that Act. They talked about her work in reducing unplanned pregnancies and of their confidence that she will stand with them in this fight going forward. They know Hillary will continue to work to expand our contraceptive options because of her 3-year battle with the White House to get approval for Plan B emergency contraception and make it available over the counter. And they’re confident that Hillary will continue her fight to give low-income women access to family planning services because she’s already fought to increase funding for these services through Medicaid and Title X.
They also referenced her historic speech in China, where she said that women’s rights are human rights. May not seem like a big deal to you guys, but to women – especially in the developing world this was a liberating thing to hear!
In other words, Hillary doesn’t just talk the talk when it comes to our rights – she walks the walk! More from Gandy et al...
We trust Hillary Clinton because every time we needed her by our side, she has been there.
Let us be clear -- the stakes are high in this election. We firmly believe that no one is better situated to confront the challenges awaiting the next president. As a pro-choice president, Hillary Clinton will make Supreme Court appointments and decisions ensuring women's reproductive rights in this country.
Kim Gandy (president of NOW) sent me an email the other day, and she spoke of Hillary’s record of standing strong in defense of our rights...
From her earliest days advising battered women, helping abused children, and providing free legal services to the poor, to her time in the White House advocating for universal healthcare, championing the S-CHIP (State Child Health Insurance) program, and helping to pass the Violence Against Women Act, to her service as a U.S. Senator, standing strong for reproductive rights and writing legislation to expand contraceptive access, helping win approval of emergency contraception, sponsoring equal pay legislation, and speaking out on the floor against the nominations of John Roberts and Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court, specifically saying that they would damage Roe v. Wade if confirmed. She was right, and I know we can count on her to nominate pro-women, pro-choice judges to the courts at every level.
Lastly, I’d like to share a video I found with everyone here. I watched this last night with my little girl and it brought tears to my eyes. Hillary truly is superwoman – blazing a trail for girls like my daughter and crashing through that highest and thickest of glass ceilings for all of us.
Check it out...
Now - for those who'd like to help pave the way for Hillary on her road to the White House, I'd love it if you would make a contribution to her historic campaign. Those TeeVee ads won't buy themselves after all!
This week Bill Moyers reports what books the presidential candidates say they would bring with them to the White House. I love Hillary's answer, the Constitution. Not only is it a thoughtful response, but I get the sense she means it.
Here are the candidate answers:
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN: WEALTH OF NATIONS by Adam Smith because we may be entering some pretty shaky economic times.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA: Doris Kearns Goodwin's book TEAM OF RIVALS. It was a biography of Lincoln, and he was confident enough to be willing to have these dissenting voices.
MIKE HUCKABEE: There's a great book by Francis Schaeffer that had a real influence on me, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE HUMAN RACE? And it talks about the dignity and worth of each individual.
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON: I would certainly bring a--my copy of the Constitution because there apparently was not a copy in the Bush White House the best I can determine. So I would bring THE FEDERALIST PAPERS.
MITT ROMNEY: JOHN ADAMS by David McCullough. A truly great leader who made a difference for America, and his example is one I'd want to follow.
Also, Obama supporter and progressive radio personality, Cenk Unger offers some surprising praise of Hillary's campaigning. I disagree with Uygur on two points, lobbyist(whom also work on the Obama campaign), and inspiration(Hillary inspires me, and I know lot's of people who feel the same way), but this is pretty nice commentary.
Finally, Hillary spoke with Tavis Smiley this week about the challenges of running as the first female front runner in a presidential primary. I really like what she has to say. She talks about how a female candidate doesn't fit the male model we are accustomed to and everyone is still sort of figuring out this new model.
Along with this site, a few of us have set up a Yahoo discussion group called Hillary's Voice. We announced it about 48 hours ago and we already have close to 100 members!
PLEASE NOTE! This group is not affiliated with the campaign in any way shape or form. It's just a group of Hillary's supporters who want to share info and help support each others' efforts to tell Hillary's stories on the Net.
If you're interested in joining us go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HillarysVoice and send a request to join. One of us will get an invite out to you and you'll be ready to rock 'n roll.
I’m sure you’ve all seen the latest debate. I won’t rehash it all here but I thought you might enjoy seeing a few clips.
A question early on in this debate related to the levels of experience of each candidate. Blitzer asked Hillary to spell out the specifics of those 35 years of experience she talks about on the campaign trail.
Right off the bat, she talks about something that speaks directly to me and my own family’s experience. She spoke about the work she did with the CDF – work that helped insure that my son and millions of others with disabilities got the early intervention and the education that’s making such a HUGE difference in his young life. Take a look...
Here’s the text – check it out...
Well I would go back 35 years, Wolf, because when I first got out of law school I didn't want to go work for a law firm. I wanted to go to work for the Children's Defense Fund, and to work on behalf of abused and neglected kids, and kids with disabilities, and kids who didn't have education or health care. And I really spent a great deal of my early adulthood, you know, bringing people together to help solve the problems of those who were without a voice, and were certainly powerless. I was honored to be appointed by Pres. Carter to the Legal Services Corporation, which I chaired. And we grew that corporation from a hundred million to 300 million. It is the primary by which people are given access to our courts when they have civil problems that need to be taken care of.
You know, I've run projects that provided aid for prisoners in prisons, I helped to reform the education system in Arkansas and expand rural healthcare. And I've had a lot of varied experiences both in the private sector as well as the public and the not-for-profit sector. And certainly during those 8 years that I was priveledged to be in the White House, I had a great deal of responsibility that was given to me to not only work on domestic issues like healthcare.
And when we weren't successful on universal healthcare, I just turned around and said, "Well, we're gonna get the Children's Health Insurance Program." And I'm so proud we do, because now 6 million children around the country every month get health care.
And I took on the drug companies to make sure that they would test drugs to see if they were safe and effective for our kids, and began to change the adoption and foster care system. Here in California, because of the Adoption and Safe Families Act, we have three times more children being adopted out of foster care.
And certainly the work that I was able to do around the world, going to more than 82 countries, negotiating with governments like Macedonia to open their border again, to let Kosovar refugees in, speaking on behalf of women's rights as human rights in Beijing, to send a message across the world that this is critical to who we are as Americans. And to go to the Senate and to begin to work across the party lines with people who honestly never thought that they would work with me.
But I believe public service is a trust. And I get up every day trying to make change in people's lives. And today we have 20,000 National Guard and Reserve members in California who have access to healthcare because I teamed up with Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina to get that done. Really positive change in people's lives, in real ways, that I am very proud of.
Here’s another clip of Hillary’s answer when she was asked about Romney’s BS point that neither Hillary or Obama have ever run a business before.
Well I would with all due respect say that the United States government is much more than a business. It is a Trust. It is the most complicated organization. But it is not out to make a profit. It is out to help the American People. It is about to stand up for our values, and to do what we should at home and around the world to keep faith with who we are as a country.
And with all due respect we have a president who basically ran as a CEO / MBA president and look what we got. I am not to happy about the results!
This lady not only talks the talk, she walks the walk and her experience is vast.
Voices Across America: A National Town Hall To Be Broadcast On Hallmark Channel
Campaign Will Also Invite One Voter To Travel To New York To Ask Hillary A Question In Person
The Clinton campaign today announced that it will broadcast Hillary’s Voices Across America: A National Town Hall live on Hallmark Channel. The town hall will be broadcast live on television and online on the eve of Super Tuesday, Monday, February 4, 2008 at 9 p.m. EST. Voters will be able to participate in this historic town hall by attending the anchor event in New York or one of the other 21 satellite simulcast events across the country, watching it live on television, and viewing a real-time stream of the event at hillaryclinton.com.
The first 60 minutes of the 90-minute town hall will be broadcast on Hallmark Channel. The campaign purchased the time on the cable network on Wednesday.
"The stakes in this election are high and this 21st century town hall is a chance for voters to make their voices heard. My campaign is about delivering solutions to the economy, the war and other challenges facing the nation. I hope that Americans throughout the country are able to join in. Our aim is to have the largest and most interactive town hall in political history," said Clinton.
The Clinton campaign also announced that one person who asks Hillary a question via the campaign Web site will get the opportunity to ask the question in-person at the town hall in New York. They will also have the chance to meet Hillary backstage after the event. Questions can be submitted by voters online at www.hillaryclinton.com/townhall. The 22 cities where the campaign will host events are Birmingham, AL; Phoenix, AZ; Little Rock, AR; Los Angeles, CA; San Francisco, CA; Denver, CO; Hartford, CT; Wilmington, DE; Athens, GA; Boise, ID; Chicago, IL; Wichita, KS; Boston, MA; St. Paul, MN; Kansas City, MO; Cherry Hill, NJ; Albuquerque, NM; New York, NY; Grand Forks, ND; Tulsa, OK; Knoxville, TN; Salt Lake City, UT.
Hillary Clinton will anchor the town hall in New York, while President Bill Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, and national and local surrogates will serve as hosts at events in the other states. Voters attending the events will be able to ask questions from these satellite events directly to Hillary Clinton in New York.
Hallmark Channel is a 24-hour basic cable network that provides a diverse slate of high-quality entertainment programming to a national audience of 84 million subscribers. The top tier program service is distributed through more than 5,300 cable systems and communities as well as direct-to-home satellite services across the country. Hallmark Channel consistently ranks among the top 10 ad-supported cable networks in Prime Time and Total Day household ratings and is the nation’s leading network in providing quality family programming. For more information, please visit www.hallmarkchannelpress.com.
Heh – I sure would love to know what they chatted about right after the debate tonight. They actually seemed to be getting on well there for a few minutes!
Okaaaay... this is what I’ve been waiting for folks. The reviews are in and (as usual) Hillary rocked in tonight’s debate!
Reviews Are In: Hillary 'Eminently Likeable,' 'Really Impressive,' 'Presidential'
ABC News' Jake Tapper - 'Clinton has a really steady tone tonight, solid and presidential. Eminently likeable.' [ABC News Political Radar, 1/31/08]
CNN’s Bill Schneider - 'Clinton comes across as more polished and knowledgeable.' [CNN Political Ticker, 1/31/08]
New Republic’s Michael Crowley - 'Hillary has a really impressive fluency and confidence in the details.' [New Republic's The Stump, 1/31/08]
NBC News' Domenico Montaro - Hillary 'knocked it out of the park.'"Hillary's been asked that question before and it is central to Obama's argument -- why should the country vote for a Clinton when there's been either a Bush or a Clinton on the ballot for a generation. She knocked it out of the park with a line she's used before, saying, it took a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush and it might take another Clinton to clean up after this Bush. It's about as good as she could answer it and it got a standing ovation."
Washington Post's Chris Cillizza - Hillary ‘turned a tough question into a terrific moment.' "Whether or not Clinton had that line in her hip pocket for tonight, she delivered it well and turned a tough question into a terrific moment." [Washington Post’s The Fix, 1/31/08]
TPM's Josh Marshall - 'Hillary's on a tear here.' [Talking Points Memo, 1/31/08]
MyDD's Todd Beeton - 'Hillary gave a strong answer on her Iraq vote.' [MyDD, 1/31/08]
Los Angeles Times' Don Frederick - 'Clinton got the biggest response of the night' "Clinton got the biggest response of the night when she reprised a line she's used before about the prospective Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton White House tenures. It took a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush, she said -- clearly knowing it was a surefire line -- and it might take a Clinton to clean up after the second." [Los Angeles Times blog, 1/31/08]
The Hill's A.B. Stoddard - 'I think she handled herself wonderfully tonight.' [MSNBC, 1/31/08]
ABC News' Rick Klein - '[Hillary] generally excels when the talk is substantive, and she handled the focus on health care rather masterfully.' [ABC News Political Radar, 1/31/08]
For links to each of the above publications, please click here It seems they were as impressed as I was with her answer re the Bush Clinton Bush Clinton BS. She got a standing O when she reminded us that it takes a Clinton to clean up after a Bush. Worked the first time and maybe it’s time for another Clinton to come in and straighten things out.
